Physical Therapist Assistant (PTA) Salary in Texas

In Texas, the physical therapy field is growing rapidly – both in the number of job opportunities and in salary. According to reports issued by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (2014), physical therapist assistants in Texas have the highest average salary in the country, earning an average of $69,370 annually. Not only do PTAs in Texas make a higher than average salary, but there are more of them working in Texas than in any other state in the nation.

In 2012, Texas Labor Market Information reported that there were 5,180 physical therapist assistants working in the state. This is estimated to jump to 7,150 by the end of 2022, representing a 38% increase. Each year, this amounts to 310 new job openings due to both normal job turnover and newly created positions.

The average salary for Texas’s physical therapist assistants is significantly higher than national averages:

National

Experienced (U.S.): $75,500

Mid-Career (U.S.): $54,400

Entry-Level (U.S.): $31,800

Texas

Experienced (TX): $96,000

Mid-Career (TX): $68,400

Entry-Level (TX): $44,100

Salaries for Physical Therapist Assistants in Texas’s Major Metro and Non-Metro Areas

According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (May 2014), the most job opportunities in the physical therapy field are located in the Dallas-Fort-Worth-Arlington area where there are currently 2,150 licensed PTAs. The Dallas-Plano-Irving area has the second most, with 1,740. The Houston-Sugar Land-Bay Town area is home to 880 PTAs, the third most in the state.

The highest salaries are found in the Brownsville-Harlingen area, where physical therapist assistants earn an average salary of $91,930. The Texas nonmetropolitan areas can also be a very profitable place for physical therapist assistants. PTAs working in the Gulf Coast nonmetropolitan area earn average salaries of approximately $83,300 annually. Physical therapist assistants earning the third highest average salaries in Texas are employed in Corpus Christi, where the average salary is $75,460.

For a detailed analysis of physical therapist assistant salaries in Texas, see the chart below (U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics 2014):